"I thrive under controversy."
-- - LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvahlo
At the end of the 2023-24 school year, LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho made an appearance during a meeting of the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) responding to recommendations made by this state-mandated group of students, parents, teachers, and other community members who have ties to those who require Special Education services. A brief question-and-answer period provided the leader of the country's second-largest school district the opportunity to show empathy to parents who often feel that the LAUSD is an adversary instead of a partner in ensuring vulnerable children receive the services they need. Instead, he veered into a complaint about how he is sometimes criticized. He should consider using some of his $440,000 annual salary to purchase armor for his thin skin.
Carvalho did not attend any of the CAC meetings for the year that just passed. Had he done so he would have heard a lot of complaints from this committee's membership. Their work was delayed by months because, in an attempt to purge the most vocal members, bureaucrats had refused to follow the approved method of appointing members to the committee outlined in the Special Education Plan Area (SELPA) and the bylaws. The membership was also blocked from discussing proposed changes to the SELPA at their meetings, which prevented it from performing the task of advising the district as mandated by state law. As a result, the Committee's outgoing Chair refused to sign the document.
The CAC was not alone in lodging these complaints. At an end-of-year ceremony meant to thank members of the state-mandated parent committees for their service, all three committee chairs detailed ways the LAUSD bureaucrats had interfered with their operations. One parent angrily ripped up her certificate in protest of the District not listening to the concerns raised by these committees. Members of the Parent Advisory Committee (PAC) and District English Language Advisory Committee (DELAC) accused District staff of generating comments about the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) and presenting them to the School Board as products of the committees.
The way the LAUSD has distributed funds under the PROP-28 Art and Music K-12 Education Funding Initiative has also been controversial. While the $1 billion of public approved funding is meant to expand arts programs, the District is accused by parents, unions, and the proposition's author of "misusing the money by backfilling funding that's been cut or redirected for other purposes". Despite assurances from LAUSD officials that they have increased funding for arts programs district-wide, parent Audrey Lieberstein alleges that Dixie Canyon Elementary School PROP-28 funds are being used to pay for an arts teacher that was covered by other funding sources in previous years.
This follows last year's elimination of the District's Primary Promise despite the objection of community members who maintain that it was highly successful at increasing math and reading literacy. This was not just their opinion; data previously released by the LAUSD backs up their position. Stung by Carvalho's refusal to listen to their concerns, these parents insist that it is the responsibility of the Superintendent to provide data to prove that his "better" replacement is providing superior results.
Another source of concern has been data security. After spending $3 million to have an AI program developed as a "conversational companion for students and an indispensable guide for parents", its supplier, AllHere, "furloughed 'the vast majority' of its staff". The District continues to move forward with the implementation of the program despite revelations from a whistle-blower that AllHere employees "allegedly violated both industry standards and the district's own policies in its handling of student data". At least one parent has expressed concern that "he found personal information about his daughter online", but "the district denies any connection between leaked data and the AI project or Boston-based AllHere".
It is hard to say how the personal data of students and staff is ending up on the web because at this point there have been multiple breaches of confidential data. When the first one occurred almost two years ago, Carvalho insisted that no sensitive data had been released. He maintained this position until the media uncovered data on the web, including information about students' medical and family histories, particularly affecting students with Special Education needs. It was only then that the Superintendent admitted that the breach had occurred.
When reports of another hack surfaced at the beginning of the summer, teachers and parents reported that they had been victimized by criminals who had obtained their personal information. Many do not feel that the District is listening to their concerns or keeping potential victims appraised of the threat that they face.
So far Dr. Rivas is the only Board Member to demand action on the data breaches. Hopefully, this will include a complete investigation of the Superintendent's role in these crises.
(Image by Dr. Rocio Rivas) Details DMCA
Since arriving in Los Angeles, at the beginning of 2022, Carvalho has shown that he excels at crafting marketing messages, high-tech presentations, hanging with celebrities, and getting himself press attention. He has also made it clear throughout his tenure that he has no patience for those who dare to question his actions. This has left parents feeling unheard, which has led to decreasing confidence in the District's ability to meet the needs of their children.
The responsibility for having an unresponsive Superintendent lies with his bosses on the School Board who have caved in to his demand that they must provide allegiance to him. The elected Board Members have even agreed to withhold proposed resolutions until Carvalho's staff approves them, giving them veto power over policy. This is not how governance is supposed to work and left unchecked will result in the collapse of the District.
Carl Petersen is a parent advocate for public education, particularly for students with special education needs, who serves as the Education Chair for the Northridge East Neighborhood Council. As a Green Party candidate in LAUSD's District 2 School Board race, he was endorsed by Network for Public Education (NPE) Action. Dr. Diane Ravitch has called him "a valiant fighter for public schools in Los Angeles." For links to his blogs, please visit www.ChangeTheLAUSD.com. Opinions are his own.
